The Province » Darcy Hordichukhttp://blogs.theprovince.com
The Vancouver ProvinceTue, 31 Mar 2015 20:52:41 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/http://s2.wp.com/i/buttonw-com.png » Darcy Hordichukhttp://blogs.theprovince.com
The Canucks miss Ryan Kesler right nowhttp://blogs.theprovince.com/2013/01/21/the-canucks-miss-ryan-kesler-right-now/
http://blogs.theprovince.com/2013/01/21/the-canucks-miss-ryan-kesler-right-now/#commentsMon, 21 Jan 2013 19:44:38 +0000http://blogs.theprovince.com/?p=104260The Edmonton Oilers looked like a fairly dangerous squad last night, although, like the Vancouver Canucks, they appeared to be short one line on offence.

My early impression of Edmonton is that they have three useable lines for certain situations. …

]]>The Edmonton Oilers looked like a fairly dangerous squad last night, although, like the Vancouver Canucks, they appeared to be short one line on offence.

My early impression of Edmonton is that they have three useable lines for certain situations. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins along with Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle is best used in offensive situations. Shawn Horcoff with Ryan Smyth and the roving winger (Teemu Hartikainen started with them last night) are best used in defensive situations. Their line with their newest No. 1 pick is the wild card in this: Sam Gagner, Nail Yakupov and Ales Hemsky could be the Oilers’ best two-way threat.

(I think I’m a bit bigger on Sam Gagner than most, and Hemsky was the best player on the ice last night. Yakupov is going to take a few games to get his NHL legs, and he took some heat for his readiness and his poor adaptation to the NHL surface, but he was no worse last night than Nugent-Hopkins. Yakupov’s birth certificate is going to ensure that media and fans won’t have the same patience with him as previous No. 1 picks who struggle in their first seasons, presumably because they’re 18.)

Anyway, the Oilers’ fourth line is Lennart Petrell, Ben Eager and Eric Belanger. The Oilers have struggled to find players to slot into their bottom six over the last six or so years, displaying a preference for big guys like Zack Stortini, Darcy Hordichuk, Colin Fraser, Jean-François Jacques, Steve McIntyre… they aren’t the only team to do this, but it doesn’t help the team as much as they think it does. One of the reasons the Canucks have done well lately is that they like to use their fourth line as an extension of the third line, or a second checking line.

Unfortunately, they only have three lines right now. After two games, I don’t think I’m sold on Andrew Ebbett as a second-line centre, and it looks like the team may call up Jordan Schroeder after waiving Jim Vandermeer Monday morning. The Canucks are also without David Booth on the second line, as well as Ryan Kesler, so that leaves the Canucks’ second line without its two best puck-possession forwards. Zack Kassian is very “toolsy”, but not good enough for 16-17 minute nights Alain Vigneault asked out of its second line last season.

So right now the Canucks don’t have a lot of offensive weapons. This was clear late in the third period. With the score tied 2-2, the Canucks had an offensive zone start, a place where they normally use Henrik and Daniel Sedin. It would have worked real well since Ralph Krueger threw Eric Belanger over the boards with Horcoff and Smyth, normally a favourable matchup for the Sedins.

However, AV likes to match up the twins with the Edmonton “Kid” Line, and they were out 40 seconds earlier. Instead of the Sedins, and with Ryan Kesler out, who would be second in line for offensive starts, Vigneault went with Jannik Hansen, Alex Burrows and Chris Higgins, with Hansen taking the draw. The Oilers would clear the puck after the Canucks failed to mount an attack.

Kesler usually takes the second most offensive zone draws. Max Lapierre and Manny Malhotra are used sparingly in that zone, but so was Ebbett. Against the Oilers, despite the Canucks having 21 offensive zone opportunities (mc79hockey has 20 over here. I went through again and counted 21 a second time, The site we normally use to take these numbers from has yet to be updated for the new season, but it doesn’t make too much of a difference for our purposes here).

Ebbett was used three times in the offensive zone. Malhotra, normally a defensive zone specialist, had four such opportunities, all of them against the Oilers’ fourth line.

Right now the Kesler injury is giving the Canucks and Vigneault matchup fits.

The Edmonton Oilers hotshot rookie rearguard is from Westbank and says he’ll have family and friends on hand. He also turned down an …

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Justin Schultz had been playing in the AHL with Oklahoma City. (Province files.)

Justin Schultz knows that he’ll have fans and foes in the stands at Rogers Arena Sunday night.

The Edmonton Oilers hotshot rookie rearguard is from Westbank and says he’ll have family and friends on hand. He also turned down an offer from the Vancouver Canucks to join the Oilers as an unrestricted free agent, so he might get some flak from the crowd, too.

“I heard a little bit of that in Abbotsford when we played there,” the 22-year-old said, regarding a visit from the Oklahoma City Barons to the Heat when he was playing in the AHL earlier this season. “You don’t really hear that stuff when you’re playing.

“It is what it is.”

There’s a good chunk of that Edmonton core group who were with Oklahoma City when they came through Abbotsford. Besides Schultz, there’s centre Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and wingers Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle.

It’s the Oilers’ season opener, but those players should have some chemistry already.

As Vancouver goalie Roberto Luongo said, “there’s no rust in their system. We’ve got to make sure we’re sharp.”

“I think it helps,” Schultz said of that group playing together already this season. “It is another big jump. We have to keep working hard and things should go smooth.”

Nugent-Hopkins added: “We worked on our game at OKC and we’re just going to try to continue working on it.”

Nugent-Hopkins, the 19-year-old from Burnaby who was the first pick of the 2011 draft, was centring 2010 first overall choice Hall, 21, and relative greybeard Eberle, 22, during the morning skate Sunday.

The other line of note for the Oilers features 2012 first overall choice Nail Yakupov, 19, with Ales Hemsky, 29, and Sam Gagner, 23. Sunday marks the NHL debut for Yakupov.

“I want to play my game, ” Yakupov said. “I want to just play simple and hard and play how I can.”

Scratches for Edmonton are expected to be defenceman Mark Fistric and forwards Darcy Hordichuk and Magnus Paajarvi. Vancouver is scratching defencemen Cam Barker, Andrew Alberts and Jim Vandermeer for a second straight game.

]]>http://blogs.theprovince.com/2013/01/20/justin-schultz-ready-for-cheers-and-jeers-at-rogers-arena-as-oilers-face-canucks/feed/0steveewenJustin Schultz is one of Oilers who has been playing this season in the AHL with Oklahoma City. (Province files.)NHL ’13 Reviewhttp://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/09/16/nhl-13-review-2/
http://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/09/16/nhl-13-review-2/#commentsSun, 16 Sep 2012 13:03:10 +0000http://blogs.theprovince.com/?p=88990There are two types of people reading this review right now. Those that bought the game already and are going to read my review to try and see if they agree with me or not. And those that are sitting …]]>There are two types of people reading this review right now. Those that bought the game already and are going to read my review to try and see if they agree with me or not. And those that are sitting on the fence about whether or not to buy this game. This review will be directed at those on the fence about buying this game, to try and help them decide if this game is worth their $60. To those that already bought this game, well, aren’t you just on the ball then? You think you’re better than me because you got the game sooner? YOU THINK YOU’RE BETTER THAN …. sorry, ok, the review, right, let’s start that. Also please note this review is insanely long. If you finish this review, you deserve a cookie.

The Lowdown:

Every year EA makes changes to their game that they label with a fancy title (“New! Augmented Reality Skate Sharpening Improvements! Watch as 30 more particles fly off the ice as you skate!”), and then it’s up to us, the paying public, to see if these changes are actual useful. When NHL 07 came out, they promised they were bringing a game changer to the world of video game hockey, and for the most part, they delivered. They kept fine tuning the game and eventually peaked in NHL ’10, where they pretty much got all they were going to get out of their hockey engine. NHL ’11 was cool, it was like an old friend visiting, and it was fun to hang out with him and all, talking about old times. Then NHL ’12 came out and it was like an old college roommate wanting to crash on your couch, and hey, maybe he could eat those doritos, and oh hey, what if he could just borrow $200, he’ll pay you back, he swears, and are you using your car this weekend? Because he needs to move 8 pounds of manure for his mom….suffice to say it was getting a bit tedious.

So with NHL ’13, things were looking up, because EA promised another game changing experience, one on par with the skill stick revolution. They promised an entire new skating engine, one that worked based on momentum. Not only did they introduce new skating, they also spent more time on the computer AI than on any of the past games they’ve made, to try and prevent the “Sopel-itis” that would often occur when playing with computer AI. Nothing was more maddening then watching another team rush in your zone, pass the puck in front of your net, and your d-man would just peacefully stare as the puck floated by him. They also promised a smarter computer AI in terms of building a team, so when you played in a season or GM mode, you could no longer trade your entire farm team for Alex Ovechkin, nor would a computer team sign nine 80+ overall goalies for its team. Oh yeah, they also promised to make it prettier. Real pretty like, so you wouldn’t be ashamed to be seen in public with it anymore. So the question is, did they deliver?

The Gameplay

The new skating engine is quite simply a ton of fun. I know it isn’t a perfect recreation of skating, but is a hell of a lot closer than anything we’ve seen in a hockey game before. In games past, EA’s players always felt very light, like they had no weight attached to them. You could spin on a dime and take off at a moments notice. The puck falls behind you and you’re going top speed? No problem, power stop, then take off dashing the other way. Everyone played like they were Pavel Bure. But if Cody Hodgson taught me one thing in his short time in Vancouver, it’s that not everyone skates like Pavel Bure, some people skate real ugly. EA moves towards a far more realistic experience in skating by putting momentum into play, and not allowing you to pull off crazy moves whenever you feel like it.

For example, if you have a fourth liner who might not be the best on his feet, if you try and go all out at top speed, you are more prone to being hit to the ice or falling over. Case in point, I had a rush with Dale Weise in one game and I tried cutting through the slot to get a shot off, at top speed. I got my shot off, but someone bumped into me and I promptly fell on my ass. You will see this a lot when you play, as cutting to the all important slot is no longer an easy task, because if you do it at top speed with someone not as skilled as Crosby, odds are you will end up on the ice.

Another joy of the new skating engine is that dumping the puck into the opposition zone is actually a viable strategy. I know EA has said this was a strategy you could use in past games, but they lied to you. NOW you can actually use this as a strategy and get the puck back. In the old games, you would dump the puck in, and you would lose the race to the puck 98% of the time, mostly due to the fact that Jason Strudwick could apparently skate backwards as fast as Ovechkin could skate forwards. In NHL ’13 if your guy gets his legs going and gets to top speed, he will beat the defender flat footed if they aren’t careful. This also means if YOU are on a defence and someone dumps the puck in, you better stop skating backwards and turn around and race for that puck, or else you are going to get beaten to an awful lot of pucks in NHL ’13 (Holding down the left trigger (xbox) in NHL ’13 makes your player skate backwards now, just a heads up). You know what this does, right? It makes Mason Raymond a very useful player in NHL ’13, as his speed creates havoc on the forecheck. (In the game, he doesn’t fall down as much, I swear.)

Aside from the skating, EA has also updated the physics so that there appears to be noticeably less suction in this years game. For those unaware, in the past, often times you would try and hit a player, or you would go to pick up the puck, and the game would help you out with a little thing called “suction.” Maybe you missed the puck, “ah well”, the game would say, “he meant well”, and the game would have the puck suction to your stick. Say you went for a huge hit but you didn’t line it up properly? The point is you meant to hit that guy, so the game would teleport you into the guy so you could land your huge hit. On one hand, this helped people out by giving them a benefit of the doubt. To most people though, this was worse than a kick to the groin because nothing was more frustrating than slipping by a guy along the boards, only to have him teleport back on top of you like he was playing Mortal Kombat screaming “Get over here!!!” as he shot a spear into your chest and yanked you back towards him. Yes, we’ve hit the point of the review where I mention Scorpion from Mortal Kombat.

In NHL ’13, the puck doesn’t suction nearly as much, nor do the players stick to each other as much as they used to. This is a very good thing because it allows for a much more organic play style. As a result of this, you will see way more battles in front of the net for a loose puck. You will see more rushes back and forth because guys can now slip along the boards and avoid checks. It leads to a more chaotic game style, which is much more representative of real hockey, so I found this to be a very good thing. Seeing the puck suction into a goalie was never a fun aspect of EA’s NHL series, so seeing your players bang at the puck and getting actual rebounds is a very positive upgrade.

As a result of all this organic puck play, and more puck collision, there is one weapon a players arsenal that they must always keep by their side at all times; The poke check. The poke check is king in this game and is a major tool in playing defense, and for creating chances offensively for that matter. Not only is poke check a huge aspect of the game, but they have even added a “chopping poke check” into the game, where you can two hand a swing at the puck that will knock the puck faster and harder in the direction you swing at. Again, this creates all sorts of scrambles in the offensive and defensive zone, leading to a more exciting and realistic gameplay, as you are constantly fighting for the puck, and as a result of the poke checks effectiveness, you are looking to pass the puck more. This also leads to more point shots going in, as guys seem to deflect the puck a lot more. That isn’t to say it’s easy getting pucks through, you actually have to move the puck around to get the open shot, but it feels like getting the puck to the point is a very strong strategy in this game. It also leads to fun situations where you bat the puck to center ice out of mid air for a breakaway in OT…

So why are these kinds of puck collisions a good thing? Because far too often people online will go into ballerina mode and try and dipsy doodle there way in a one man rush the entire game. Or the CPU would enter your zone and they would cycle around you endlessly as you could do nothing but watch. Due to the poke check being so strong, it forces people to pass a little more, and even then, they can’t do this endlessly because odds are you’ll get your stick in a passing lane eventually. I enjoy this far more than last year’s game, where one guy could circle in your zone, beer in hand, watching Golden Girls on his other TV, while you flailed away at the puck, unable to do anything. Now you can counter the one man show by utilizing your poke check. Poke checks are your best friend. Learn it. Like it. Love it.

The end result of the new gameplay additions? I think it breathes new life into this franchise, and even though it’s not as on par with changing hockey gaming like the skill stick did, it is pretty damn close. It makes for a much different experience when playing hockey, one that will make you have to re-learn how to play. A lot of complaints you will hear about the skating is how long it takes to turn, which I think is a good thing. A lot of past NHL games wouldn’t punish you for going all out all the time. In NHL 13 it pays off to be a little more patient, to sit back a little more, instead of going around like Matt Cooke on acid. It helps promote a more realistic game of hockey by forcing people to think through their actions by introducing a risk reward aspect to going for that big hit, or trying to do that huge end to end rush by yourself. On the pro side, when you do line up and land that huge hit on a dump and chase, it feels really really good. I actually screamed with delight when I landed this hit during my game last night.

Instead of just rushing the puck back and forth, you actually have a benefit to passing the puck around more. You can actually use a dump and chase strategy. Small role players feel like they have a better defined role because the speedy guys are so useful for dump and chase, and the gritty guys can use their body size to keep the puck hemmed in the opponents zone. Superstars feel like stars because they can pull off moves at high speed. You find yourself wanting Claude Giroux on the ice over someone like Dale Weise when you need a goal in the last minute of a game. These are all big improvements over last years game.

Gameplay Modes – Minus GM Connected Mode and NHL Moments Live

All of the usual suspects are here in gameplay modes. Be a Pro, Be a GM, Season mode, online play, shootout, practice, etc, etc. Nothing too ground breaking has changed in these modes, but a few notable additions were added

Be a Pro (This mode is where you lock onto a single player only and play through their career)

-You can request a trade from your team

– You can be rejected in said trade request if your player sucks too much and has no value (The Fedor Fedorov rule)

– You can retire whenever you want (The Stefan Legein rule)

– You can play multiple seasons in the CHL before you attempt to make it in the NHL now (The Cody Hodgson rule. Against his will, but a rule nonetheless.)

– You can pick which team you want if you want to skip the drafting business (The Lindros rule.)

– Be a Legend mode is in the game where you can start a career with Gretzky, Lemiuex, Hasek, etc etc, but you have to unlock them with using your regular Be a Pro by earning enough experience points, which seems very time consuming and annoying. I dislike having to unlock the Legends.

EASHL

– They have made it easier to have custom pro’s at each position. You can have different saved presets at each position

– You can level up and apply experience more often, as they have included more levels to their leveling system. This allows you to feel good about spending your time watching someone kick your ass because at least you get to apply stats points quicker.

– New All-Star awards handed out to top 5% of players in each position. So for that dude who doesn’t work and stays at home living with his parents, your time to shine is now (I don’t judge, I used to be that guy once too)

– Not much else of importance has changed. To be honest with you I got bored with the EASHL after NHL ’11 for a variety of reasons I won’t bore you with here, so I am probably not the best to weigh in on this mode. From the outside looking in, it just looks like a few perks have been added to this mode and not much else.

Hockey Ultimate Team

– This is basically the card game of the NHL series. You collect players cards, who you can then use to make up a team and play other humans or computers in single games or tournaments. You earn points to buy packs of cards by playing games and winning tournaments.

– Some people find this gameplay super addictive. You can bid on cards and buy cards other players put up for sale, so I can see the addictive side of it. I played it a lot when it first came out, and I would sit around trying to find the best deals on player cards up for sale, so I can see why people enjoy it. I just hated it because your player cards would have contract lengths, so eventually that prime Alex Ovechkin card you found? It’s going to run out, and then you can’t use him in your lineup anymore.

– This year, however, they’ve taken out career lengths for the players, so now you can keep your cards as long as you want. Which means I probably would have played this mode a ton had it not been for the GM Connected Mode (Yes I am saving that for last.)

– The easiest way to describe this is that yeah, it’s like a hockey role playing game. Level up your characters, earn points to make your players better, buy more players, etc, etc. They made a bunch of minor improvements to this mode, too many to bother listing, so just assume if you loved playing this last year, you will probably enjoy it even more this year.

Be a GM/Season Mode

– The biggest improvement they made was the GM Brain, where they made the computer much smarter at doing it’s job. It went from Mike Milbury running teams to Ken Holland running teams.

– Game takes everything it can into account, from age, to team needs, to cap hit, to how injury prone he is when eating pancakes. This makes for a more challenging and realistic experience.

– Player rating system has been revamped. Last year they rated a player on offense, defense and athleticism, this year they rate them on six things. Shooting, puck skills, senses, skating, physical, and defense. Finally Shane O’Brien’s sense of taste will come through for him in a video game.

– When you look through players rosters, players will have a defined role on a team. 1st liner, 2nd liner, 3rd liner, etc. This helps humans and CPU alike as they try and see what holes they have on their team.

– Player progression has been revamped! This excites me since I have an addiction to looking for the next big thing. In NHL ’13, players have a 1-5 star rating of their potential, 1 meaning scrub, 5 meaning potential star. They also have a color coding to these stars. Red stars mean they have a high chance of never meeting their potential (Patrik Stefan rule), yellow stars mean they have a decent chance of meeting the mid range of their potential, and green stars mean they will most likely reach full potential. There are very few green and red star players from what I have seen, which makes finding a green star very exciting, and making a red star player feel like they have the plague. Still, it’s a nice addition to the drafting and trading process, as it gives more depth to the entire system. A player that has silver/grey stars means the player has stopped reaching their potential. Older players over the age of 25 generally have silver stars.

– To be honest, the changes to this mode are something you will only find after months of playing. With the game only being out a week, I can’t tell you for sure if these changes come as advertised, but I can tell you in a week of playing I have had more trade offers from the CPU, I have had the CPU accept more realistic deals, and it is far more intuitive to look through rosters with the new stats in place.

NHL Moments Live

In this mode you get to re-create famous moments in NHL history, or re-create moments that occur in real time. So for example, you get to try and re-create Gretzky’s game where he got his 50th goal in his 39th game, or you might be re-creating that four goal that Eberle scored from the night before.

I don’t care at all about this mode. I dislike it and here is why:

A) Most of the classic NHL moments are from another team. In face, none of them are Canuck related moments. I am not suggesting they should all be Canuck moments at all, all I am saying is the odds are these emotional moments are from another team which which I have no attachment to, and thus do not care to re-create

B) Even the historic moments that every hockey fan should enjoy re-creating, I just don’t care. Gretzky got 50 goals in 39 games? That’s awesome. That’s amazing. I still don’t give enough of a crap to re-create that moment in a video game.

C) It’s too forced. I love it in a game when something happens that mirrors real life. Like for instance, I was playing in my online league and I had Stoll come in on a partial break. I thought to myself “I should shoot it top corner, just like Stoll did to end the Canucks in OT last year during the playoffs.” I shoot top corner and scored and I started laughing/crying. This was organic. It just happened. It made telling the story a cool moment because it just sort of happened. With this mode, everyone will have their story be the same. “It was crazy, I was playing last night and I got 8 points in a game with Gagner!” “No way! Me too!” “Woah, this is creepy guys because so did I!” Boo. Boo this mode.

GM Connected Mode

This is my baby. This is the mode I have been waiting for all my life. This is the mode that dreams are made of. In this mode, you basically play the GM mode, but can play against humans. You can have up to 30 GM’s running every team in the league. Each team can have players, coaches, and a GM on it. You could theoretically have 750 people in one leaugue. The odds of that happening? Slim to none. But still, even the fact you can have 3o humans to trade, sign, and play against? This. Is. AWESOME. Not only that? There is an ap for the iPhone you can download so you can sign, trade, and look at your schedule/stats on your freaking phone. You could be in a boring meeting, and you could whip out your phone and work on that trade for Joe Thornton you’ve been trying to finalize all week instead of talking about synergy in the workplace. (Odd note: The ap isn’t available on Blackberry. You know. The sponsor of the game and all.)

I currently have a league running for Xbox and PS3. We have forums set up for trading. People are printing out roster sheets, looking at the holes on their team, trying to see who they can trade, trying to adjust their rosters. I have people sending me trade requests, trying to sign free agents. It is everything you could want in a hockey game. I love it and I can’t wait to play more of it. It’s the game mode I’ve always wanted.

That being said, there are some issues with it. For one, the options in this mode are very bare boned. I can’t view schedules that easily as a commissioner, and I can’t do things like re-assign GM’s to new teams. As a commissioner you can’t really do much besides reject or accept trades. As a player, it’s really hard to tell when your other GM’s are online available to play a game. Also, it would be nice to have an option to view other games being played, to sit in as an observer. There are also several other things they could do to make it a more fully fleshed out experience. As a person running a league with a website, the more information they give me access to, the better a job I can do. I am hopeful NHL ’14 improves upon this.

The worst part about the GM Connected mode though? The menu loading times. I am not using hyperbole when I say they are one of the worst experiences I have had in a video game. They are truly truly awful. It makes the game incredibly painful to play as you try and go through the menus to play your games. I don’t think I could write enough to convince you of this, so you will just have to experience it for yourself. All I did in this video was go through the main menu options of the GM Connected mode, and click on the first option. This should take me 30 seconds. It ended up taking me almost 10 minutes.

Menus aside? This mode is the most fun I’ve had in hockey since I used to run a fantasy sim that was text based only. This mode was made for me. I love the fact that even if the gameplay ends up being awful, I could still theoretically run a sim based only league, where NHL simulates the results for the league instead of making us play the games.

Final Verdict:

There are two things to look at when judging this game, the game modes, and the gameplay. Game modes, there are so many to choose from, you are bound to find one you enjoy. This game has so much depth in regards to gameplay mode, it’s ridiculous. If you can’t find a mode you like to play in this game, then you simply hate hockey. Will you have issues with your favorite mode? Most likely, yes. Be a Pro still feels far inferior to the Fifa and Madden counterparts for example. Overall, though, there is so much to do in this game that if I grow frustrated with one game mode, I move on to another one for a while. It’s hard not to find something to do in the game.

In regards to gameplay, I love the changes they’ve made. My usual concerns in hockey are a) how many cheap goals are there and b) how smart is the AI? Both of these items, alas, are too hard to gauge only a week into release. Anything I say now could easily be thrown in my face a month from now, when five money goals are being used daily online, and the CPU AI is acting like a stupid monkey stuck in a blender every other game. But I give a hesitant thumbs up to both here, as the gameplay so far is fun, and the CPU AI looks and plays far better right now.

Will there be flaws found? Of course there will be. There will always be cheese goals in NHL games, that is the consistent in life. And eventually you will find yourself in a screaming match with your XBOX over the fact it acted in a way that was not Lidstrom like. Some people will hate the skating because it changes the way they play the game. Some will hate the power of the poke check. Some people will probably still have issues with the AI. But if you’ve never played the NHL series before, you will find it a worthwhile investment. If you’ve played every game in the series, or got bored of it around NHL ’10, I think you should still pick this game up and give the new skating engine a try.

If you just like pretty things? Then this game has that covered too. Instead of describing the graphics, it is easier to show you. It is not something that will add a ton to your game, but having it look pretty is a definite bonus.

End result: 9 out of 10 . It doesn’t get a 10 out of 10 because that is reserved for something truly groundbreaking, a generational type game, but it would still get my vote as sports game of the year. The GM Connected menus alone kill off any chance of a perfect 10. The game is one of the best hockey games I’ve played in many years, which makes it an easy answer for me; Yes this game is worth the $60. Now hurry up and join my league, so I can trade you Scott Gomez. He’s a good player still, I swear…

VANCOUVER – Ask Kevin Bieksa how his summer has been, he says OK.
“But it’s been way too long,” he quickly adds.
It may stretch longer, if the owners and players can’t come to an agreement by Sept. 15.…

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VANCOUVER – Ask Kevin Bieksa how his summer has been, he says OK.
“But it’s been way too long,” he quickly adds.
It may stretch longer, if the owners and players can’t come to an agreement by Sept. 15.
“That date is coming quick,” Bieksa said on Thursday from Crowsnest Pass in Alberta, where Rick Rypien grew up, spent his offseasons and eventually took his own life a year ago.
“There have been a lot of [labour-related] things happening the last couple of days,” Bieksa said. “Now we don’t know what’s going to happen next.
“We’ve submitted our proposal. Their initial proposal … I don’tknow how to say it delicately but it wasn’t really a starting point.
“Our proposal is practical and the owner’s reaction is disappointing from our end.
“We want to play. We need help from the owners to meet us halfway, or at least work with us a little bit.”
Bieksa, Tanner Glass, Darcy Hordichuk and Kris Versteeg were in Crowsnest to hand over 50 sets of shiny new hockey gear to youngsters in town.
The kids suited up then played a game, Hordichuk and Glass coaching one side, Bieksa and Versteeg the other – “The side that won, obviously,” Bieksa said _ at the Coleman Sports Complex.
It was the fifth annual players association Goals and Dreams Cup and was held in honour of Rypien, a year and a day after he committed suicide and 24 hours after a gathering of fans outside Rogers Arena to honour Rypien’s name.
“Hockey is only part of Rick’s story,” Bieksa said. “Obviously he had a tremendous amount of people respect him for how he played the game. He was an underdog, undersized, he worked his way up from undrafted to making it to the NHL. He fought bigger guys, stuck up for his teammates.
“He was a fun guy to watch on the ice and that’s why there are so many fans in Vancouver that honoured the anniversary outside Rogers Arena.
“Then there are the people who really knew him, knew what a really good person he was off the ice. There were a lot of admirable qualities about him – kind-hearted, loyal, very unselfish.
“That’s why you see people starting charity golf tournaments in his name or starting up websites in his name.
“His legacy will carry on because he had a lot of close friends.”
Rypien’s family held a charity golf event at Crowsnest last weekend.
The NHLPA chose Crowsnest for the 50 sets of new hockey gear because Rypien had been a strong supporter of KidSport, particularly in Alberta.
The NHL Players Association also donated to Rypien’s family a plaque and photo book honouring the man who succumbed to clinical depression at the age of 27. gordshockey@hotmail.com
twitter.com/gmacsports

]]>http://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/08/16/vancouver-canucks-defenceman-kevin-bieksa-a-winning-coach-at-rick-rypien-memorial-game/feed/0RypResizedgordmcintyreCanucks Mayday: A look at Maxim Lapierrehttp://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/05/13/canucks-mayday-a-look-at-maxim-lapierre/
http://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/05/13/canucks-mayday-a-look-at-maxim-lapierre/#commentsMon, 14 May 2012 05:44:50 +0000http://blogs.theprovince.com/?p=74742(Mayday! Throughout the month of May, we’re taking a look at the Canucks’ roster and organization every weekday. Today’s subject: Maxim Lapierre.)

He first credited the emergence of the sun after an extended rain-soaked Vancouver winter and early …

]]>(Mayday! Throughout the month of May, we’re taking a look at the Canucks’ roster and organization every weekday. Today’s subject: Maxim Lapierre.)

He first credited the emergence of the sun after an extended rain-soaked Vancouver winter and early spring. He then referenced sleeping as many as 16 hours a day for his heightened on-ice presence. What Maxim Lapierre should have done is point to the calendar and explain how March 1 is really like Oct. 1 because that’s when the season really starts for the versatile and durable Canucks centre.

Lapierre should explain how he can be plugged into the first line during the absence of the concussed Daniel Sedin and respond with three goals and five points during a five-game stretch while the Canucks tried to create a sense of urgency with a prime playoff spot long locked up. He should explain how a guy who often handled the puck like a grenade during the monotony of the regular season and took too many dumb penalties to finish 13th in the league with a career-high 130 minutes, would revert to a disciplined wide-eyed dynamo. He took just five minors in the final 18 regular-season games and simply played better as the calendar flipped to April. Lapierre still agitated but he picked his spots and got the opposition off its game and in the penalty box, too.

In a Presidents’ Trophy clinching 3-0 win over Edmonton on April 7, it was Lapierre who lit the fuse to a listless affair. Despite the Canucks holding a 24-6 shot advantage in the second period, he drilled Darcy Hordichuk into the corner boards with a heavy check. Ben Eager took exception and Hordichuk also weighed into the fray that resulted in a four-minute power play. Less than a minute later, Henrik Sedin ended a 22-game scoring drought.

“I had to bring some energy and bring a good hit,” said Lapierre, who had four shots and three that missed the mark against the Oilers. “I don’t know what it is about this time of the year — maybe it’s because there’s more sun — I feel unreal in April all the time. I really like this time of the season when every game has a direct impact on our season. I just like the big challenges.”

Lapierre could get a bigger one next season and the trick will be to bring his spring game to the fall, if there’s not a work stoppage while the league and its players iron out a new collective bargaining agreement. With Ryan Kesler undergoing shoulder surgery and sidelined until November and the need for a third-line centre — if unrestricted free agent Samme Pahlsson is jettisoned — there is hope that Jordan Schroeder can help fill the void after a 21-goal AHL season. But that’s probably a stretch. Unless the Canucks can make a trade because the UFA market at centre is clogged with aging and expensive centres, then the riddle in the middle might have to be solved by committee. If Kesler doesn’t labour too long to return to form and there’s a bonafide third centre in the mix, then Lapierre can easily revert to his fourth-line role and provide some stability to that alignment that needs a more consistent look and more consistent effort. Either way, Lapierre is valuable.

At his best, Lapierre is a third-line centre because he’s strong enough on the forecheck and good enough on the backcheck to not be a liability. And during that three-game goal streak near the end of the regular season, he showed that there’s some untapped potential in a guy who will go to the net and has obviously regained confidence. His effort for the lone goal in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup final last June put the Canucks up 3-2 and a win away from the franchise’s first championship. Quite the turnaround for a player whose career was in doubt and his reputation as a disruptive yapper sticking to him like gum on a shoe. All Lapierre wanted was to regain his wits because after being traded twice in the 2010-11 season — first from Montreal to Anaheim and then to the Canucks — it was mentally draining and his confidence dropped along with his minutes with the Ducks.

“When I came here, I wasn’t really confident,” recalled Lapierre. “That’s the main thing. They helped me get out of that hole because when I walked in the dressing room I was really surprised. They treat you like family and you don’t really feel like you’re at work. It’s like being with your buddies and it’s unreal. It really helps mentally.

“I thought I could get back to my real game and it’s easier to do with this type of team.”

Even though Lapierre seems to have reformed, his brain cramps are a constant concern because he’s capable of more, not less. With a year left on his contract at a bargain $1 million US, he played in all 82 games this season and all 19 when acquired at the trade deadline in 2011. That durability is as vital as learning to turn the other cheek and not get into verbal sparring matches that can cost his club.

“Max has done it on a couple of occasions and has been told to shut up and play and that’s what we expect from him,” said Canucks coach Alain Vigneault.

Vigneault was blunt because he can rightfully expect more next season and Lapierre has shown he’s up for the challenge. Especially if he plays from October to February the way he plays in March, April, May and June.

Key statistics:

— Three goals and five points in three late-season games against Dallas, Calgary and Anaheim. A total of 19 points (9-10) and a career-high 130 penalty minutes, 13th highest in the NHL.

The future:

— At 27, is only entering the prime of his career. Versatile, durable, affordable. A keeper.

Contract status:

— Hard to find a better bargain than the year he has left at $1 million before becoming a UFA.

Team options:

— Could start the season as the third-line centre. If the Canucks go the trade or free-agency route and find a long-term solution in the middle with Ryan Kesler on the mend until November, that player can eat to second-line minutes and then revert to the third line. Other lesser options are Jordan Schroeder and Manny Malhotra.

Grade: B

bkuzma@theprovince.com.

twitter.com/benkuzma

]]>http://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/05/13/canucks-mayday-a-look-at-maxim-lapierre/feed/1Lapierre.3.jpegbenkuzma1Canucks Hat Trick: The King of Kings, Lappy lapping it all up, the Daniel dilemmahttp://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/04/07/canucks-hat-trick-the-king-of-kings-lappy-lapping-it-all-up-the-daniel-dilemma/
http://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/04/07/canucks-hat-trick-the-king-of-kings-lappy-lapping-it-all-up-the-daniel-dilemma/#commentsSun, 08 Apr 2012 06:43:54 +0000http://blogs.theprovince.com/?p=69740Three things to ponder after the Canucks claimed their second consecutive Presidents’ Trophy with a 3-0 blanking of the Oilers on Saturday at Rogers Arena.

1. KING OF KINGS: The season series was tied 2-2 and Roberto Luongo made 38 …

]]>Three things to ponder after the Canucks claimed their second consecutive Presidents’ Trophy with a 3-0 blanking of the Oilers on Saturday at Rogers Arena.

1. KING OF KINGS: The season series was tied 2-2 and Roberto Luongo made 38 saves on March 26 as the Canucks posted a 1-0 decision over Los Angeles at Rogers Arena. But that won’t be the storyline when the conference quarterfinal opens here Wednesday. It will be Jonathan Quick and his league-leading 10 shutouts and second-ranked 1.95 goals against average. It will be about a team that ranked second in defence and fourth on the penalty kill and how it found just enough offence to slip into the No. 8 seed.

“It’s going to be a difficult challenge because they have a lot of players who can hurt you and they play good defence and have a great goalie,” said Canucks winger Chris Higgins. “It’s going to be a hard-fought series.”

Of course it is. The first round provides the best entertainment because teams are relatively healthy and play like they’ve been shot out of a cannon before attrition hits. Two years ago, the Canucks were down 2-1 to the Kings in a first-round series that featured a triple-overtime win for the Canucks and a double-overtime loss. It also featured a Kings power play that scored on six-straight opportunities and Mikael Samuelsson had seven goals in the six-game series. But that was then. Higgins believes the Canucks are bettered prepared than a year ago when they went to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final. Experience is one thing, versatility is another.

“You just never know what’s going to happen in the playoffs,” said Higgins, who hobbled through the last 2 1/2 series last spring with a fractured foot and has played on the second and third lines this season. “Your going to have injuries and the fact we can move guys up and down the lineup is a positive for us. And it usually ends up being a war of attrition.”

2. LAPPING IT ALL UP: Maxim Lapierre didn’t know whether to credit the sudden appearance of the sun in Vancouver or sleeping 16 hours a day for his heightened on-ice presence. He’s been more than just alert in leaving his fixture as a fourth-line presence to take twirl on the first and second lines. He’s been fast, aggressive and opportunistic and with three goals in the final five regular-season games, he’s one of those postseason wild cards that every team would love to hold.

Lapierre has done a better job at picking his spots to get the opposition off its game and did it to perfection against the Oilers. Despite the Canucks holding a 24-6 shot advantage in the second period, he drilled Darcy Hordichuk into the corner boards with a heavy check. Ben Eager took exception and Hordichuk weighed into the fray that resulted in a four-minute power play. Less than a minute later, Henrik Sedin ended a 22-game scoring drought.

“I had to bring some energy and bring a good hit,” said Lapierre, who had four shots and three that missed the mark against the Oilers. “I don’t know what it is about this time of the year — maybe it’s because there’s more sun — I feel unreal in April all the time and it’s going to keep going this year. I really like this time of the season when every game has a direct impact on our season. I just like the big challenges.”

Lapierre has always maintained that he knows his role but how do you keep a guy who skates so well and hits so hard down on the fourth line? You probably don’t.

3. THE DANIEL DILEMMA: There have been sightings in the arena hallway, light workouts in the gym and management disputing a report that the injured Daniel Sedin has been skating on his own following a March 21 concussion from an elbow to the chin that cost Chicago defenceman Duncan Keith a five-game suspension. What there hasn’t been is any sort of clarity on when the winger will actually play and the Canucks again trotted out the familiar refrain that there’s nothing to report on that puzzling front.

Coach Alain Vigneault wouldn’t say whether Daniel will practise Monday and if he doesn’t there will be speculation that the winger has either suffered a setback or that the Canucks are being extra cautious because players don’t recover in the same manner and this is Daniel’s first concussion. Henrik Sedin is buoyed by his brother’s progress and seemed somewhat confident of his recovery and that he’ll play in Game 1 of a first-round series against Los Angeles. Then again, there’s no such thing as a sure thing with a concussion. And while you can wonder why Andrew Ebbett was playing on the first line Saturday and Lapierre was on the second line — despite the absence of Mason Raymond who’s wife was due to deliver the couple’s first child — Vigneault does have to look at all scenarios in case Daniel isn’t ready for the conference quarterfinal opener.

bkuzma@theprovince.com
twitter.com/benkuzma

]]>http://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/04/07/canucks-hat-trick-the-king-of-kings-lappy-lapping-it-all-up-the-daniel-dilemma/feed/5Lapierre.3.jpegbenkuzma1And Boom Goes the Dynamite: Edmonton at Vancouver, December 26thhttp://blogs.theprovince.com/2011/12/26/and-boom-goes-the-dynamite-edmonton-at-vancouver-december-26th/
http://blogs.theprovince.com/2011/12/26/and-boom-goes-the-dynamite-edmonton-at-vancouver-december-26th/#commentsTue, 27 Dec 2011 07:51:52 +0000http://blogs.theprovince.com/?p=50313Did anybody else tell themselves they weren’t going to bother going shopping today? But then later on, ended up making an excuse to go outside? Maybe I’ll get a hot dog. A man has to eat, right? And why not …]]>Did anybody else tell themselves they weren’t going to bother going shopping today? But then later on, ended up making an excuse to go outside? Maybe I’ll get a hot dog. A man has to eat, right? And why not get a hot dog that is close to Future Shop? I mean, what if my phone battery dies? I’d need to buy a new one, so this way, I’d be right near a Future Shop! It’s pretty much a matter of personal safety at this point. Then later on did you come home and realize you spent too much money and you began to rationalize it? “Well I mean, this game, it’s obviously one I might never find again for this price. I am obligated to buy it. What kind of gamer would I be if I didn’t own this?” No? Just me? Moving on…

Today’s game is dedicated to Cam Ward. I had a variety of other people to dedicate it to, some of which included the guy at Future Shop who glared at me for taking the last copy of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 4 for $9.99, or the hot dog vendor who talked about the good old days when people used to line up outside Future Shop on boxing day, or myself for dropping ketchup all over my shirt. But in the end, Ward gets the award because he scored a goal tonight. And as a goalie myself, I will ALWAYS pump the tires of a fellow goalie. DO YOU HEAR THAT THOMAS? IT’S CALLED A GOALIES UNION FOR A REASON! Jerk.

Watch below for Cam Ward using Jedi mind powers on Ilya Kovalchuk. “This is not the net you are looking for.”

Kudos to you Cam, kudos.

What Happened

Edmonton 3 Vancouver 5

You know that guy who always goes “I knew I should have dressed [random crappy player] in my pool!” when they score? (This guy is usually me.) They got their chance tonight as the Canucks scored three minutes into the game on an Ebbett goal. Was it a wrist shot? A slap shot? A nice deke? None of the above. Chris Higgins shot the puck and it banked in off of an Oilers skate, then off of Ebbett’s skate, and into the net. The best part about this goal? Ben Eager races right by Bieksa on a line change as Kevin skates the puck in just seconds before they score.

The first period was all Canucks, as it could have been 5 or 6 nothing the way the Sedins were toying with the puck all night. Sadly they ended the first period only being up 3-0. Come on Vancouver, it’s the holidays, be more giving damnit. The 2-0 goal was the usual Sedin magic as Henrik flipped the puck perfectly to Daniel, and he calmly put it by Nikolai “I don’t believe in last calls” Khabibulin. The third goal was even nicer, as Jannik “The Danish Dash” Hansen used his new speed racer he got for Christmas to race in and create a two on one with Andrew “I’ve stapled Mancari on the farm with this one” Ebbett diving forth with a huge effort to tap the puck in past a saddened, and most likely drunk, Khabibulin. Who was covering Ebbett? Ben Eager.

So for those keeping score at home, Ben “I don’t see anything wrong with a minus” Eager was minus two on the night after one period. Why oh why did we never sign him?

The second period was where it got interesting, as one of the major talking points of the game occurred here. Dale “I will block you” Weise threw a check on Plante from the Oilers, and Plante ended up smashing his face into the glass, cutting himself badly, and ended up having to leave the game. Weise got 5 and a game, and the Canucks now had to go to the penalty kill. Eberle made it 3-1 one on a bang bang play where Luongo didn’t have much of a chance on. Burrows, however, made it 4-1 shorthanded after Kesler gave him a great pass from down low. But then 1980’s hockey continued as Ryan Smyth made it 4-2 after a nice pass from Ryan “How am I doing so well this year” Jones. So the period ended with the score being 4-2 for the Canucks.

The third period saw Burrows return the favor to Kesler early on, as Kes made it 5-2, and the rest of the game was the usual Canucks killing off the clock. The Oilers got a goal from Corey “Harry Potter jokes are awesome” Potter, but that was all the Oilers could muster up against the Canucks. It was a solid victory, one that the Canucks never really looked like they were in trouble with, as they take over the top spot in the North West division.

Highlight of the Game:

This was an easy choice for me. Obviously, being a huge MANcari fan, I was all set to hate on Ebbett and trash the crap out of him during the game. But try as I might, that little bugger played a really solid game. And this goal just shows the kind of grit I love to watch in hockey. So I couldn’t hate him. I tried. But it wouldn’t stick. So I tip my hat to you Ebbett for the determination you showed on scoring this goal. Keep it up, because I know a MANcari waits in the wings, set to take over if you stumble.

Random Thoughts:

– Ryan Kesler is the man. If you want to know why his jersey is the highest selling jersey in Vancouver, just watch this game to find out. Coming off of a terrible Calgary game, Kesler lead the charge onto the ice by attempting murder several times throughout the night. He was trying to maim the Oilers so badly that at one point, he missed a body check and broke the stanchion because he slammed into it so hard. He ended the night with two points.

– Also, NEVER TRADE KESLER. Please. Thanks.

– Cody Hodgson hit the post and I was more saddened that I couldn’t tweet “Cody Godson Mode: Activated” more than the fact he didn’t score. I might have a problem.

– I still feel bad about the beating the Finnish goalie took at the hands of Canada today. And I also realized I would love watching that happen to Thomas. Yes, I am still bitter.

– Chris Higgins would be one of my finalists for the hardest working Canuck, or most consistent Canucks on the year. He was such a great pick-up. It’s nice that occasionally when we trade for a player he ends up being awesome instead of ending up being Rucinsky.

– Roberto Luongo played well tonight, as two of the goals he didn’t have any chance on, and the third one was a seeing eye shot. He continues to play well, convincing me that the Canucks keep a crappy Canuck clone version of him around for Octobers

– The Hit. Dale Weise on Plante. My thoughts? It wasn’t a dirty hit at all. If you watch the video, he hits him shoulder on shoulder, and then Plante turns and smacks his face on the board. I don’t even see it being a 2 minute penalty, but I guess this is how the NHL manages games now. 5 and a game so no frontier justice occurs? I don’t get it.

– Keith Ballard got an assist! Yay! He also punched an Oiler in the face today. This leads me to believe that Keith Ballard punching people leads to points. Keep on punching!

– When Burrows contract runs up, I hope we retire his old contract and remember it as one of the best contracts of all time. On one hand, I want to keep Burrows that cheap for forever, but if there is one guy on the team who deserves some money, it would be Alex.

– Sami Salo logs 20+ minutes a night, is a top 4 d-m an on this team, and when he gets injured we all get really really scared. His contract? 2 million. If you see Salo on the street, please give him a hug. Just don’t hug too hard.

– The Oilers have a ton of talent, which is why I am glad we are beating them now while we can. Their top line will be vicious in the future (They already are pretty awesome), so as Canucks fan, I can only hope they continue to have terrible defensive zone coverage.

– Taylor Hall whines a lot and looks at the refs all the time a la Crosby in his first year. I love first rounders looks of “How could you not call that??” they give to refs.

]]>Expect Oilers forward Darcy Hordichuk to drop the gloves at least once tonight against his old team.

And after all the talking he did today, it shouldn’t be hard to find somebody on the Vancouver Canucks that’s willing to answer the bell. Especially considering it’s only the preseason. If it were the playoffs, maybe the Canucks would just ignore him. That, or he’d be in the press box shadowboxing the popcorn machine.

What did Hordichuk say that suggests we could be watching some scraps tonight in Edmonton? Well, for starters, he essentially called the Canucks soft by way of his analysis of their loss to the Bruins in the Stanley Cup final.

“You run up against a team like Boston and they have a little bit more toughness and it showed,” he said. “And I’m not the only one who saw it, everybody saw it.”

And he’s right. The Bruins were the more physical team. But does that mean the Canucks needed an enforcer?

Yes, believes Hordichuk, who compares having an enforcer on the team to “having a gun in the house.”

“You are not going to use it a lot of the time,” he said, “But when you need it, it’s there. And it wasn’t there and it was the biggest game of the year.”

Of course, another thing that wasn’t there for Vancouver in the biggest game of the year was a goal.

But he’s got a point about the gun thing. You can’t go wrong with a gun in the house. Nope. Never.

At any rate, Hordichuk also attempted to justify the role of enforcers in the NHL by flogging the importance of Shawn Thornton in Boston’s victory over Vancouver.

“At the end of the day, Thornton helped out a lot of us, guys in that role,” said Hordichuk. “Had Vancouver won, it would have been again everybody is trying to be like Detroit and we don’t need that toughness. What he [Thornton] did in that series and [Milan] Lucic and [Brad] Marchand, it’s going to change Vancouver’s approach.”

In case you’d forgotten (or never noticed in the first place), Thornton drew into Boston’s line-up after the Bruins fell behind 2-0 in the final. He dressed for the final five games of the series, four of which the B’s won.

In Game 3, an 8-1 Boston win, Thornton made his presence felt early with a hit on Alex Burrows.

Said Bruins veteran Mark Recchi after the game: “I thought he was awesome tonight. He has a physical, veteran presence. He’s won a Cup before. He knows what it takes. He’s a great leader in the dressing room. He’s a big guy and can skate well.”

You’ll note Recchi didn’t mention Thornton’s fighting ability.

Recchi did, however, mention Thornton’s playoff experience. And his leadership. And how he’s a good skater for his size.

So did Thornton suiting up for the Bruins really justify the need for guys who play Hordichuk’s “role”? Because nobody’s saying you don’t need to be tough to win hockey games. The question everyone’s asking these days is whether teams need designated enforcers, regardless of whether they can actually play the game.

The Edmonton Oilers enforcer saluted Shawn Thornton’s gritty play for the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup final which proved there’s room in today’s NHL for intimidation. And he …

]]>EDMONTON — Darcy Hordichuk tossed a bouquet and a brick Thursday.

The Edmonton Oilers enforcer saluted Shawn Thornton’s gritty play for the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup final which proved there’s room in today’s NHL for intimidation. And he took issue with those who believe fighting fourth-liners should be the first to be removed for sake of the game. Which is understandable. Hordichuk and Ben Eager signed free-agent contracts with the Oilers to provide a young core with veteran toughness.

“At the end of the day, Thornton helped out a lot of us, guys in that role,” said Hordichuk, the former Canucks who signed a one-year, $825,000 US deal with the Oilers in the offseason. “Had Vancouver won, it would have been again everybody is trying to be like Detroit and we don’t need that toughness. What he [Thornton] did in that series and [Milan] Lucic and [Brad] Marchand, it’s going to change Vancouver’s approach.”

Hordichuk is right. The Canucks are auditioning a host of potential fourth-liners in the preseason to find the right identity. They won’t want to sacrifice a speed or skill element, but they don’t want Marchand treating Daniel Sedin like a speed-bag again and have the Canucks winger absorb a half dozen punches to the head that went unanswered.

“Taylor Hall told me he wouldn’t know what to do in that situation,” added Hordichuk. “He said after the second punch, he wouldn’t have taken any more. I said: ‘Taylor, a lot guys were instructed to take punches.’ It’s nice to hear a kid say he’s got pride and he’s got to fight back and send a message back to those guys.”

The Canucks had 2-0 and 3-2 series leads on the Bruins but lost the grit-quotient game. They learned the hard way that it takes more than skill to win it all.

“Sometimes it backfires,” said Hordichuk. “You run up against a team like Boston and they have a little bit more toughness and it showed. And I’m not the only one who saw it, everybody saw it.”

Which only makes the 31-year-old Hordichuk irritated amid calls to banish fighting from the game.

“It’s embarrassing,” he said. “I just watched a UFC fight and a guy got hit more in one round than I have my whole career and they’re talking hockey and fighting? It’s the preseason and there are eight games and I’ve looked at the rosters and I’m probably going to have eight fights. I’m motivated and I’m excited.”

Hordichuk fought Matt Kassian in his first preseason game and is embracing a role so many see going the way of the dinosaur.

“Edmonton offered something that this is the best fit for me,” he added. “The first shift I lined up against [Cal] Clutterbuck with Hall on my wing. I haven’t done that for a long time. It was just to send a message. If you’re going to run around, I got the green light already. Usually, guys run around and I’m stuck on the bench. Situations like that I get used and I calmed down Clutterbuck. Then I ran into a guy [Kassian].”